Google Paid For Adblock Plus "Acceptable Ads" Whitelist Privilege?

According to German new site Horizont, Eyeo -- the developers behind the popular Adblock Plus Chrome and Firefox extensions -- have been accused of accepting payment from Google and other unnamed companies, and putting them on an "Acceptable Ads" whitelist. This list prevents ads, banners, and pop-ups by these paying companies from being blocked by Adblock Plus.

The report by Horizont however, didn't mention just how much Google and the other companies paid Eyeo for this special privilege. However, on the Adblock Plus website, it is stated clearly that such a list exists (since 2011), and that it's offered free to smaller websites -- which rely on adverts to survive. Eyeo also stated that ads that don't annoy users should be allowed to remain.

Eyeo also argues that it has a reason for charging others for the special treatment. "Managing this list requires significant effort on our side and this task cannot be completely taken over by volunteers," the FAQ says. "That's why we are being paid by some larger properties that serve nonintrusive advertisements."